With 2-year school, St. Thomas seeks to help low-income students

University of St. Thomas President Julie Sullivan was interviewing for her current job three years ago when she brought up the idea of a two-year program for low-income students.

"She described not exactly like this, but the need for something like this and that she would like to have St. Thomas consider it," said Mike Dougherty, head of the Dougherty Financial Group, who was at the interview. "At dinner that night my wife and I started to talk about it, and the more we talked about it, the more that it fit our profile of what we'd like to do."

The idea struck home with Dougherty, who was orphaned before the age of 14 and kicked out of Creighton University shortly into his first college stint. He says he found discipline after joining the military, and came back to enroll at St. Thomas.

Dougherty hopes the Dougherty Family College at St. Thomas can help other disadvantaged students.

With a combined $18 million in private donations from Dougherty and others, St. Thomas plans to open the college next year.

"I really feel like it's important for University of St. Thomas as a Catholic university to be involved in the community, to be making a difference in the community," said Sullivan, the first female president in the University's 131-year-history. "And to be looking at whatever the social issues are in our community which aren't allowing every person to realize their full potential."

The school aims to help a low-income students get an associate's degree in liberal arts, and a start on an eventual bachelor's degree.

It would be a separate school from the university's undergraduate program. Sullivan said academic performance in high school won't play as big a role as the student's drive and willingness to work.

"It's going to be very focused on looking at your resilience, you perseverance. When have you faced challenges and what have you done?" she said. "ACTs are going to be optional. So it will be different."

Sullivan says St. Thomas will not profit off the school.

The yearly cost of the program is $15,000, but with St. Thomas scholarships, plus state and Pell grants, tuition could be as low as $1,000 for students. Sullivan recognizes that cost isn't insignificant.

"We do believe it is important for each student to have some skin in the game," she said.

St. Thomas will admit around 150 students in Dougherty's first class.

Students will move through the highly structured program in cohorts of 25, going though four days of intensive classes each week at the downtown Minneapolis campus and one day of working for a business that will give them real world experience.

They'll get free breakfast and lunch, as well as a transportation pass.

Each student will have a mentor through the program. The school is structured to give support and remove barriers that low income students often face.

"I understand what it means to grow up poor, on welfare, live in public housing, be the first person in your family to go to college," said Buffy Smith, a sociology professor at St. Thomas who will head the Dougherty Family College. "I know that I would not be in my position today without a caring and supportive community and structural support that has helped me on my journey so I feel this is also just another way for me to pay it forward."

St. Thomas isn't the first Minnesota school or program to recruit first-generation and low-income students.

Augsburg College and Hamline University have programs that recruit first generation students, and many programs exist within state and private colleges to serve first generation and low-income students.

And the Minnesota State college system does offer associate's degrees that transfer into four-year schools.

But Larry Pogemiller, the head of the state's office of higher education, said St. Thomas's program offers something different.

"This is the first time in Minnesota where we've got a four year institution that's actually creating a two year program within its structure," he said.

Sullivan, the St. Thomas president, hopes other schools follow her college's lead.

"I want to eliminate the prosperity gap. I want to eliminate the educational attainment gap," she said. "And I want to see leaders in our fabulous companies in Minnesota coming from all walks of life."

The two-year school has just applied for accreditation. That process that could take several months.